Archived: Beresford lodge Residential Care Home

People's experience of using this service and what we found

People told us they felt safe and established systems were in place for responding to any safeguarding concerns. Staff were confident in the actions they would take to protect people from any type of abuse. Staff were recruited safely and there were enough staff deployed to meet people’s needs.

Person-centred risk assessments and care plans were in place which contained information relevant to the needs of people. Records were detailed and provided guidance to staff on how support should be delivered. In addition, environmental risk assessments were completed which considered any potential risks associated with the building.

The service was effective in meeting people’s needs. Staff received appropriate training and their competence and knowledge was checked by the registered manager. Systems were in place to monitor people’s nutritional intake and staff worked to ensure the meal time experience was socially enjoyable. Staff told us they felt supported in their work and received regular supervision.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

Staff were caring and treated people in a dignified manner. People’s preferences for their care and support were recorded and staff respected the choices expressed by individuals. Support was provided by a consistent staff team who understood the needs of people well.

Effective quality monitoring systems were in place to ensure the home was well managed. The registered manager led by example and promoted a positive culture where staff were encouraged to reflect on their work to continually deliver improvements.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at the last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 28 April 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on our inspection programme.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our inspection programme. If any concerning information is received, we may inspect sooner.

We last inspected the service in December 2014 and rated the service as ‘Good.’ At this inspection we found the service remained ‘Good’ and met all of the fundamental standards we inspected against.

A registered manager was in post and this manager had not changed since our last inspection of the service. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

There were safeguarding procedures in place. Staff were knowledgeable about what action they should take if they suspected people were at risk. The local authority safeguarding team informed us that were no on-going organisational safeguarding matters regarding the service.

The well-maintained premises were clean and comfortable. Tests and checks were carried out to ensure that the environment, equipment and premises were safe.

Recruitment checks continued to be carried out to ensure that staff were suitable to work with vulnerable older people. There were sufficient numbers of staff deployed to meet people’s needs. Records confirmed that training was available to ensure staff were knowledgeable and suitably skilled. Staff were supported through regular supervision and appraisal meetings.

People's nutritional needs were met and they were supported to access healthcare services as required. Medicines were managed safely and in line with best practice.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is required by law to monitor the operations of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) including the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS), and to report on what we find. MCA is a law that protects and supports people who do not have the ability to make their own decisions and to ensure decisions are made in their ‘best interests’. It also ensures unlawful restrictions are not placed on people in care homes and hospitals. In England, the local authority authorises applications to deprive people of their liberty. We found the provider was complying with their legal requirements. The registered manager and staff had applied and followed the principals of the MCA appropriately.

We observed a lot of positive interactions between staff and people who lived at the service. Privacy and dignity was promoted and protected. Care records showed people were involved in their care and support. People were supported to have choice and control of their lives and staff supported them to be as independent as possible. Staff sought people’s consent before carrying out any care or support.

Person-centred care plans were in place which detailed the individual care needs and support each person required. There was a range of activities on offer which were meaningful and interesting to people. Staff also provided one to one social support to people.

No complaints had been received since our last inspection and there was a complaints procedure on display in the home. Lots of positive feedback had been received from people, relatives and external professionals.

Audits were carried out to monitor the quality and safety of the service. Action plans were developed to address any areas which required improvement. Staff spoke highly of the registered manager. They told us they felt valued and enjoyed working at the home. We observed that they approached their roles with a kind and caring attitude.

We found people's needs were assessed and care and treatment was planned and delivered in line with their individual care plans. One person said, 'They are all lovely here, I wouldn't get this service elsewhere, I've not got a single thing to complain about, I'm happy here and they are all good.'

We found that there were infection control systems in place and these were adhered to.

Appropriate checks were undertaken before staff began work.

Records contained accurate and appropriate information. One staff member said, 'We've made loads of progress on the records, they are really good now, they are so much better than they've ever been.'

During our inspection we spoke with five people who used the service and four members of staff. People told us they were happy living at Beresford Lodge. One person said, "It's a good place to live, I can't think of anything I would change."

We found that people's needs were assessed and care and treatment was planned and delivered in line with their individual care plans.

We concluded that people were provided with a choice of suitable and nutritious food and drink and were supported to be able to eat sufficient amounts to meet their needs.

Records were not always maintained to an appropriate standard, which meant we were not able to confirm whether people's care and support needs were actually met.

We found people were given appropriate information and were involved in making decisions about their care and treatment. People told us staff treated them with respect and courtesy. One person said, "They always ask me my opinion."

People told us they were well cared for. One person said, "The staff are very good and kind." We found that people's needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered in line with their individual care requirements.

Staff received professional development and people told us staff were well trained.

We saw the provider had systems in place to gather feedback from people who used the service, and to regularly assess and monitor the quality of service people received.